When all is said and done, it’s expected as many as 1,000 people will be served with complimentary Thanksgiving dinners.

From noon until 6 p.m. at the local shelter on Leon Avenue, the homeless and other people in need are being provided with a meal of turkey, ham, potatoes, vegetable, rolls and pie.

“It’s very important, it’s part of tradition,” Phillip Whatman, emergency services manager for the Gospel Mission, said of the need for the annual dinner. “To continue this tradition with the community around them, to engage with each other and to celebrate in food, it brings community together.”

Former shelter guest, Gordon Siemens, presented a poem prior to the meal in honour of Gospel Mission outreach worker, JoAnne.

Kelowna mayor Colin Basran, and MLAs Steve Thomson and Norm Letnick were among the more than 40 volunteers who helped serve the meals and provide other assistance during the annual community event.